A Dance with Dragons
by Penn Langley
Summary: She'd kill him herself, she decided. There had to be some way to fake Potter's death during the tournament. People had died before; one more name added to the list wasn't too much of a difference. He'd be damned if he actually thought he had any semblance of a chance at winning.
1. Chapter 1

Annie followed after her father, making sure that Draco still held her mother's attention when she made several streaks of green and orange appear in her hair. Her father gave an amused hum but made no mention of her display. She pulled at the emerald-green skirt she was wearing and made sure that her orange and white striped tights were still straight. She may have taken it a tad too far but she had been rooting for Ireland since the beginning of the Qualifying Rounds last fall.

There were too many stairs in the stadium she thought as she climbed to the top. The stairs were rather nice though, carpeted in a rich purple. The Minister's box was at the very top of the stadium, right in between the golden goal posts. Annie huffed and grabbed her father's hand, this had better be worth the long flight. The Minister's box was smaller than she had imagined. There were only twenty purple-and-gold chairs arranged in two rows. There was a small crowd of people standing near the front of the box looking out into the stadium.

Her father spotted the Minister right away and began to lead the way to him. He was wearing dark emerald robes with a gold pin in the shape of a four-leaf clover. Next to him stood the Bulgarian minster wearing fine black velvet robes trimmed in gold. Annie pulled at her skirt again wondering if she too should have worn a pair of robes. Draco and her mother passed her, walking with their heads held high in a rather obnoxious fashion causing her to laugh. Her mother only gave her a small wink. Annie followed wanting to the see the pitch before any of the players came out.

A hundred thousand witches and wizards were taking their places in the seats, which rose in levels around the pitch. The entire stadium was bathed in golden light, which seemed to be coming from the stadium itself. The pitch looked smooth as silk and at each end stood three golden hoops. Across from them stood a giant blackboard, flashing advertisements in golden writing.

"Must you do that?" her mother asked coming up next to her. She gave Annie's hair a look of disdain that made Annie smile. Annie scrunched her nose turning the orange and green streaks red and black.

"Would you prefer this?" she asked, giving her mother a grin. Her mother laughed and ran a hand through Annie's hair.

"It's defiantly an improvement." She said giving her and Draco a soft smile. "We all know Bulgaria will win," Her mother laughed as she turned her hair back into Irish colors.

"Your father's going to talk to the Minister," she led Annie and Draco back towards their seats, the cold look returning on her face. Annie sighed and stuck her tongue out at her brother.

Draco leaned in to whisper in her ear, "I'll bet you twenty galleons Bulgaria wins tonight."

"Make it forty and I'll take the bet." Annie whispered back keeping a close eye on her mother's back. Draco nodded, a smirk forming on his face.

"I'm sure Lynch will pull through for you," he said, drawing attention to Annie's slight crush on the Irish seeker. Annie turned bright red and slammed her fist into her brother's gut making him falter. Their mother turned around and gave them a sharp look but Annie caught the amusement in her eye. Her father turned around as they came closer and gave them a look making both Annie and Draco straighten up.

"Ah, Fudge," he said, holding out his hand as he reached the Minister of Magic. "How are you? I don't think you've met my wife, Narcissa? Or our children, Arianna and Draco?"

"How do you do, how do you do?" said Fudge, smiling and bowing to her mother and her. "And allow me to introduce you to Mr. Oblansk - Obalonsk - Mr. - well, he's the Bulgarian Minister of Magic, and he can't understand a word I'm saying anyway, so never mind." Annie caught the Bulgarian Minister's eye as Fudge said this. He gave her a wink and raised a finger to his lips making Annie grin.

"And let's see who else - you know Arthur Weasley, I daresay?" Fudge continued paying no mind to how her father tensed. Mr. Weasley turned and gave her father a cold look. The last time they had been this close to each other they had ended up fighting in Flourish and Blotts' bookshop. Annie looked around and noticed that all the Weasleys were there, including the two insufferable gits. Annie eyed Fred and George for a second making one of them turn around and wave. She scowled at him and turned back to the Minister.

"Good lord, Arthur," her father said softly. "What did you have to sell to get seats in the Top Box? Surely your house wouldn't have fetched this much?"

Fudge, who wasn't listening, said, "Lucius has just given a very generous contribution to St. Mungo's Hospital for Magical Maladies and Injuries, Arthur. He's here as my guest." Annie knew that the contribution hadn't even made a dent in their Gringott's vault.

"How - how nice," said Mr. Weasley, with a very strained smile. Annie followed her father's gaze towards the bushy haired muggle-born. Annie sneered at the girl from behind her father making her turn a bright pink. She knew her father desperately wished to say something but he wouldn't dare in front of the Minister. He did however give Mr. Weasley one last mocking look before continuing on to their seats. Draco took the seat in between her mother and father leaving Annie to sit between her father and the Bulgarian Minister.

"I'm guessing you do speak English?" she whispered to him as Fudge turned away. The tall man gave her a slight nod of his head. Ludo Bagman charged into the box before Annie could say anything else.

"Everyone ready?" he said, his round face gleaming. "Minister - ready to go?"

"Ready when you are, Ludo," said Fudge comfortably. Bagman whipped his wand out and held it to his throat muttering "Sonorus."

"Ladies and gentlemen . . . welcome! Welcome to the final of the four hundred and twenty-second Quidditch World Cup!" he said, his voice thundering over the cheers that filled the stadium into every corner of the stands. Annie clapped her hands together, letting out a loud cheer that made her father wince next to her. It was nothing however compared to the screams from the spectators. Annie could faintly hear some of the Irish stomping out their national anthem as the waved flags into the air.

The blackboard across from them seized advertising Bertie Bott's Every Flavor Beans and now showed BULGARIA: 0, IRELAND: 0.

"And now, without further ado, allow me to introduce . . . the Bulgarian National Team Mascots!" The Bulgarian Minister stood and roared in approval along with the entire right side of the stands, which was a solid mass of scarlet. Annie stood too climbing on her chair to peer down into the pitch where a group of blonde women were emerging.

"Veela," someone shouted as the women began to dance. They were beautiful with white-gold hair that shone on its own and moonlit skin. Annie laughed as the men began to make wild gestures of strength and love. Draco had climbed to the edge and was attempting to jump over while her mother tried to stop him. Annie pulled her camera from her bag and took a picture of it. Her father was sitting rather calmly but Annie noticed that he had covered his ears. When the music stopped, her mother was finally able to pull her brother to his seat. Angry yells filled the stadium as the men began to shout for the veelas to come back. Fudge himself had pulled his gold shamrock pin of and threw it out into the pitch.

The veela moved off the pitch lining up on the right side of the stands. "And now," roared Ludo Bagman's voice, "kindly put your wands in the air . . . for the Irish National Team Mascots!" Annie shot up and climbed over her father to get a closer look at the bottom of the pitch. A brilliant green-and-gold comet came zipping into the stadium. It did one lap around the stadium before splitting into two smaller comets, each hurtling toward opposite goal posts. Suddenly a rainbow curved from one comet to another. The crowd gasped in excitement as the rainbow faded and the two comets merged into a giant glittering shamrock, which rose above the stands. The shamrock, Annie realized, was actually thousands of tiny little bearded men with red vests, each carrying a small lamp of gold or green. "Leprechauns!" Annie gasped as Draco pulled her away from the edge of the box.

Gold began to fall from it into the stands below making the crowd start to shove and push at each other. Annie shared a laugh with Draco as she saw the younger Weasleys claw at the gold on the floor. The shamrock disappeared as the leprechauns descended to sit opposite the veelas on the pitch.

"And now, ladies and gentlemen, kindly welcome - the Bulgarian National Quidditch Team! I give you - Dimitrov!" A scarlet-clad figure on a broomstick, moving so fast Annie almost didn't catch it, shot out onto the field from an entrance far below. The Bulgarian supporters burst into a fit of wild applause .

"Ivanova!" A second scarlet-robed player zoomed out. "Zograf! Levski! Vulchanov! Volkov! Aaaaaaand - Krum!" Draco stood at this, trying to catch a glimpse of his favorite player. He was surly looking with a hooked nose that made him look far older than eighteen. Draco cheered passionately making her mother laugh.

"And now, please greet - the Irish National Quidditch Team!" yelled Bagman. "Presenting - Connolly! Ryan! Troy! Mullet! Moran! Quigley! Aaaaaaand – Lynch!" It was Annie that cheered this time. Her voice was so loud she was sure someone could hear it on the other side of the pitch. Even the Weasley twins turned around and looked at her in shock as she passionately praised the Irish seeker. Her father had to pull her back into her seat when she refused to stop gawking at Lynch. She had been enamored with the blonde seeker ever since she had first laid eyes on him. Draco used it to his advantage making sure to mention him at least once a day.

It wasn't just the seeker that she admired though; Ireland's chasers were the best she had ever seen. They worked together flawlessly and ruthlessly defeating their opponents. Annie could only hope that she could play like that one day but it was incredibly hard to find such a good dynamic between chasers. Annie reached to take her Omnioculars from her father's hand and raised them to her eyes.

* * *

Annie stood clutching her father's hand as Lynch suddenly went into a sharp dive. This was no feint Annie realized and began to cheer. The Irish supporters rose up in another great wave of green, screaming Lynch on as Krum began his pursuit. Blood still covered Krum's face making it hard to see but he was level with Lynch now. The two of them suddenly collided, hurtling toward the ground.

"He's going to crash!" she shouted squeezing her father's hand so tightly it turned white. Lynch hit the ground with tremendous force and was immediately stampeded by a horde of angry veela.

"Where's the snitch?" Draco bellowed, not taking his eyes off the field. It's over Annie thought as she watch Krum fly back up, his scarlet robes streaked with blood. He raised a fist high over his head and showed everyone the snitch resting in his hand. Annie howled with rage as her brother cheered but then the blackboard flashed BULGARIA: 160, IRELAND: 170. Annie looked on befuddled for a moment before realizing what it meant. It seemed the Irish realized too, because slowly the rumbling from the Ireland supporters grew louder and louder and erupted into screams of delight. Draco turned to his sister an annoyed look on his face as he realized he had lost their bet.

"IRELAND WINS!" Bagman shouted, who like the Irish, seemed to be taken aback by the sudden end of the match.

"KRUM GETS THE SNITCH - BUT IRELAND WINS - good lord, I don't think any of us were expecting that!"

"We won," Annie, said her mouth dropping open in shock before a giant smile bloomed on her face. "We won!" She shouted turning to engulf her father into a hug before doing the same to her mother. Draco although not entirely happy with the outcome pulled his sister into a hug and spun her around. Annie bounced around, unable to stop moving. The Irish stands were still cheering as the Irish team took a victory lap around the field.

"I told you," she shouted to her brother so that he could hear her over the roar of the crowd, "I told you Ireland would win. I said we had better chasers but you wouldn't believe me."

She skipped around him emphasizing each word with a sharp prod to his ribs. Draco grabbed her hand and she pulled him into a short dance, spinning him around the box as she cheerfully sung, "I told you" in his ear.

"And as the Irish team performs a lap of honor, flanked by their mascots, the Quidditch World Cup itself is brought into the Top Box!" roared Bagman. The entire box was suddenly lit with a blinding white light so everyone could see the inside of it. Two wheezing wizards entered the box carrying a large golden cup that they handed to the Minister.

"Let's have a really loud hand for the gallant losers - Bulgaria!" Bagman shouted. And up the stairs into the box came the seven defeated Bulgarian players. The crowd below was applauding appreciatively. Her mother eyed the keeper, making her father move in front of her. Draco looked star struck as he watched Krum enter the box but he schooled his features into a haughty look. Krum looked awful, two black eyes were sprouting on his bloody face. He was still holding the snitch as he stood on unsteady feet waiting for his turn to shake the hands of both Ministers. When Bagman finally announced his name, the whole stadium gave him a resounding, ear-splitting roar.

Then the Irish came making the entire stadium fill with noise when they lifted the cup above their heads. Annie roared with approval.

"Look there's Lynch," she said pointing a hand towards the Irish seeker. He was even more handsome in person. Fair-haired with bright blue eyes, he gave a dazed smile and little wave to the crowd as Moran and Connolly held him up. She squeezed Draco's arm tightly as they brought him closer to where she was sitting.

"Lynch?" Draco said loudly, his voice carrying over to the Irish team, "The guy you've been obsess-" Annie slapped her hand over his mouth refusing to allow him to embarrass her. Draco struggled in her grasp making them look over at her. Annie flushed a bright red when she caught the amused grins of Moran and Connolly. Her father rolled his eyes and pulled Draco away from her and towards their mother. Annie laughed when Draco's face grew an equally bright pink as their mother fretted over him.

"If the two of you act anymore childish, I'd think you were newborns." Her father gave her a slight frown but she caught the look of amusement in his eyes. He could pretend all he wanted but he honestly did love the two of them.

Annie looked away from her father and back to Lynch. He was standing on his own now with a lively smile on his face. Merlin, he was fit, she thought, eyeing the way his Quidditch uniform outlined his toned arms. Annie caught her mother's eye and received a coy look as if she had known exactly what Annie was thinking. It wouldn't be surprising if she had, her mother always seemed to know what they were thinking.

Annie moved closer to the team offering her congratulations to Mullet as he shoved the trophy in the air once more. He looked a bit like Wood when they had won the cup last year. Annie wove her way through the crowd, the fluttering in her stomach lessening slightly as she caught Lynch watching her.

His eyes were a bit unfocused as she stepped in front of him and his cheek bulged out from the swelling. Annie gave him a bright grin and stuck out a hand.

"Arianna Malfoy," she said the smile never leaving her face.

"Aidan Lynch," he said his voice garbled.

"I think everyone knows your name now" she said with a laugh. Annie moved closer to him, giving him a hooded look from beneath her lashes. "Are you alright?"

Aidan laughed giving her a slight nod. "It's that bad." He shrugged his shoulder but even that seemed to make him wince. "Bit embarrassing actually."

"It might have been worse. You could have lost."

"Well, there's that." Aidan said a bright smile on his face.

"You're beautiful," Annie blurted out before putting her hands to her mouth, "I don't know why I said that." Aidan nodded not seeming to hear her as he looked at someone behind her. Annie looked behind her embarrassed as a dark haired man approached them. The man flung his arms around Aidan ignoring Annie completely. Annie stood there awkwardly as the two began to speak to one another. Aidan seemed to finally remember that she was there because he turned to introduce the man.

"This is my better half, Will Kennings." He said wrapping an arm around the man's waist. Understanding dawned on Annie, as she looked down mortified. Apparently, no had thought it necessary to tell Annie of Aidan's sexuality. Draco who looked like he was clearing enjoying his sister's humiliation began to laugh loudly allowing Annie to escape. Annie looked back to the couple once before sighing, at least they were happy together.

"You prat," she hissed as she reached him, "why didn't you tell me?"

"And miss you hitting on him?" He said a large grin on his face, "Very smooth, by the way. You're beautiful," he mocked, laughing when Annie shoved him away.


	2. Chapter 2

"Draco, Annie," their mother called, waving them over from the edge of the stairs. The Irish team had been swept away by reporters and most of the stands were clearing out as people went to celebrate. Annie could still hear the raucous singing from the Irish side as the climb down the stairs. Leprechauns shot over their heads cackling as they hit spectators over the head with their lanterns.

When they cleared out of the stadium Annie caught sight of the fireworks that exploded over the Shamrock covered tents. Green shamrocks and dancing leprechauns exploded into the sky in a flurry of green, orange, and white sparks. The Malfoy tent was a concoction of striped silk arranged into a miniature palace. Her father was already there when they arrived. He was holding a glass of Firewhiskey and speaking to a man in rapid French. Annie rolled her eyes and snuck into the tent. A colossal crystal chandelier hung in above a set of spiraled stairs that lead to their rooms. The marble floors were so clean Annie could see her reflection in them. The Bulgarian flags Draco had hung earlier had been changed to Irish ones. Even the portraits hanging on the walls had been transfigured to wear Irish colors. Annie laughed loudly at the sudden change of support.

Annie ran up the stairs and changed into a pair of emerald green shorts and an orange and white striped shirt. Her brother was sitting on the stairs when she came down looking extremely bored as her parents conversed with the growing crowd down stairs.

"Get up," she said, startling him. She snuck past her mother and stole a bottle of Firewhiskey from one of the house elves. Draco and her quickly slipped through the entrance of the tent and ran out into the moor.

"Where are we going?" Draco shouted, as he tried to catch up to Annie.

"To find Gwen and Tom," Annie shouted back weaving in between a group of intoxicated men who were performing an elaborate jig. Her brother groaned loudly from behind her. Annie never quite understood her brother's dislike for her best friends.

"Can't I go find Pansy?" He asked.

"You can have your snog after we find them," Annie said, "Besides, Mum told me to watch you."

"Are you going to stay and watch while I snog her, too?" Draco asked, casting her a dark look.

"If you stay I'll let you have some," Annie shook the bottle in Draco's face making the sour look vanish into a small smile. Annie smiled back and led the way to the light blue tent she knew belonged to Gwen. When they go there Annie spotted Gwen and Tom sitting outside by a small bonfire. The two twins playing with their youngest bother, Eric, as he waddled around clutching Tom's wand in his hand.

"No," Gwen shrieked, as her little brother pointed the wand at the fire making it explode upward. Annie laughed as the hem of Gwen's skirt caught on fire making her dance around to put it out.

"Nice moves," Annie said grabbing Gwen and Tom's attention. The two twins grinned brightly as they saw her. Gwen leaped up and pulled Annie into a bone-crushing hug before passing her to Tom who did the same.

"Ireland won!" Annie squealed, swinging Gwen around in a circle. The two girls fell to the ground in a mass of breathy laughter.

"Did you see Lynch and Moran?" Gwen asked after her giggling stopped, "And Krum," she moaned, "his poor face."

"How long have you been here?" Tom asked, cutting off any reply Annie would have made. He had an exasperated look on his face like he was already tried of dealing with the two girls.

"A couple of minutes. Draco put up a bit of a fuss on the way here." She said, giving her brother a smile when he scoffed.

"I've brought a present," She pulled the bottle of Firewhiskey out and passed it to Tom, "Nicked it from the house elves."

"She promised me some," Draco said to Tom. Tom looked at Annie in surprise making her shrug. They had reason to celebrate and it wasn't like she had offered her brother the entire bottle.

"I saw you talking to Lynch," Gwen said making Annie flush a bright red. Gwen leaned in eagerly as Annie recounted her meeting with the Quidditch star.

"No," Gwen gasped, dramatically "You mean Moran was there and you didn't say a word to him." Her arm came up to deliver a sharp blow to the back of Annie's head.

"How could you be so stupid?" Gwen wailed, throwing herself at Annie. They toppled over, collapsing on the ground in another round of laughter.

"They haven't even had Firewhiskey yet," Tom whispered to Draco as they watch the two girls topple over repeatedly. The excitement from the game and the joy they felt from winning seemed to be enough to make them all feel elated. Annie was sure that not even a cheering charm could mimic the same effect as winning a Quidditch match.

"They shouldn't have given Bulgaria that penalty," Annie winced as Gwen shouted in her ear. "It's not our fault Krum has such a large nose."

"It would have been better if someone had done that to Montague, last year. Can you imagine the look on his face?" Annie scrunched her nose up and felt the cold tingling as her face transformed to match that of Montague's. Gwen shirked with laughter as Annie pulled a looked intense hatred on her face.

"Do Flint… do Flint," Tom chanted, handing Annie a glass of Firewhiskey. Annie shook her head changing her face back to her own.

"No, one hideous face is enough for me," Annie shuddered, imagining what would happen if her face had gotten stuck like that. They settled into a lazy peace, watching the fireworks dance in the sky. Gwen chattered on next to Annie about her summer and the game, while Draco argued with Tom about the Bulgarian team.

Annie watched as Gwen pulled Tom into a ridiculous Irish jig around the fire. They looked outrageously graceful despite the fact that they were running around the fire like a bunch of uncivilized muggles. Draco was watching them too, his laughter causing the glass of Firewhiskey to slosh around. His eyes fell shut before he startled himself away a few minuets later making Annie laugh in glee as the Firewhiskey spilled all over him.

"Come on," she said pulling Draco up so he leaned against her. Annie gave her friends a brief goodbye and guided her brother back to their tent. Once he was in his room, Annie moved on to hers changing her close in a daze. Annie crawled into bed feeling more exhausted then she had in a while. A giddy grin was still etched on her face when she closed her eyes.

* * *

"Annie… Annie…wake up," Draco said softly, shaking his sister's shoulders. Annie woke up with a startled gasp. Her blue eyes had a slight sheen in them, as she looked around dazed. Draco's face appeared in front of hers, his eyes wide and hands shaking as he pulled her up. He kept looking over his shoulder to the entrance of her room. Flashes of light, red, blue and green, filled the room as the sky outside filled with color. Screams littered the heavy silence making Annie jump up and grab her wand.

"What's going on?" she asked Draco her limbs trembling from the cold and sudden fear she felt. Draco glanced over his shoulder again, as if waiting for an attack before turning back to Annie,

"We need to go, there's no time to explain," he said dragging her out of the room. Annie pushed herself ahead of him. There was no noise downstairs; even the house elves were eerily quiet. Annie watched as people ran past the front entrance screaming in terror. Outside was even worse as swarms of people pushed and shoved there way into the forest.

"Stay close to me," she warned Draco her wand out in front of her. As they reached the edge of the forest Annie finally saw what it was that scared everyone. Black hooded figures wearing masks marched around the campsite setting fire to tents. Others had their wands held in front of them twisting people into the air. Muggles, Annie realized, watching their faces distort into silent screams.

"Draco… Draco," Annie shouted as Draco let go of her hand and run into the forest ahead. Annie ran faster than she ever had. Her bare feet protesting with every jolting step she took. She looked around lighting her wand; there was no one in sight. No pale blonde hair that belonged to her brother, only tall twisting trees. She spun around hearing a whimpering sound behind her.

"Weasley?" Annie questioned spotting the redhead on the ground. The girl looked up giving Annie an ice-cold glare that made her roll her eyes. The girl's ankle was twisted at an odd angle and there was a gash on her leg that was bleeding heavily. Annie kneeled down next to the girl making her recoil. Annie sighed, not surprised by the girl's reaction but still hurt that she would think Annie would harm her.

"I'm not going to hurt you," Annie said softly, staring into the girl's bright hazel eyes, "I just want to help." Annie pulled her wand out holding it out in front of her. She wasn't seventeen yet but she was sure her father could get any charges against her dropped. Annie muttered a few spells under her breathe to stop the bleeding and close the gash up.

"I don't know how to fix your ank-," Annie started but was interrupted by a wand pointed at her throat. "Fred." She said politely, backing away from his sister.

"What'd you do to Ginny, Malfoy," His eyebrows were drawn together in a heavy glare and his wand hadn't moved away from her throat. His face grew redder by the second and every muscle in his face was tight with anger. He looked taller and more commanding than she had ever seen him.

"Stop it," his sister called from the ground her voice riddled with pain. " She was trying to help until, you two idiots stepped in." Fred didn't immediately relax but his grip on his wand loosened slightly making Annie shove him away.

"She cut her leg open, Weasley, all I did was fix it." Annie sneered, watching as George picked Ginny up. "Her ankle's broken too." She told George in a slightly calmer voice.

"Why aren't you with you Death Eater friends?" Fred questioned, blocking her view of his sister as he took a step toward her. Annie clenched her jaw, gnashing her teeth as she kept herself from hitting him. She was only looking for her brother not a fight with Fred, she reminded herself.

"I don't have any Death Eater friends," she said, her voice was far calmer than she was. A loud bang sounded from somewhere nearby, illuminating the forest in a harsh green light. Annie shuddered as she caught sight of the muggles twisting and contorting in the air like ragdolls. Annie let out a loud scream as something fell to the floor in front of her. She scrambled back quickly bumping into Fred.

"Malfoy?" he asked, his voiced high pitched and panicked as he tried to see why she was screaming. She dimly heard George cast a spell behind her but she was transfixed on the sight in front of her. One of the muggles had fallen to the ground, her brown hair splayed around her like an angry halo. Her clothing was slightly torn by the fall and her breathing was but she was alive from what Annie could see.

"Merlin," She stretched out an uncertain hand, her fingers brushed the girls sweater.

"Malfoy, get up," Fred said quickly, pulling her to her feet as Ginny and George moved away. Annie wobbled on her feet. Her shoulders shook as her breath came out in shallow gasps.

"Draco," she said faintly. "I have to find Draco," she took a stumbling step away from Fred but he caught her wrist. She tried to push Fred away not wanting the blood-traitor to touch her but his grip was too strong.

"Where is he?"

"I don't know," she cried, her pale eyes welled up with tears as she looked around the forest, "he ran off when they started attacking." Annie knew Fred wanted to get going. He kept looking back at George and Ginny with slight worry in his eyes. They were near the edge of the tree line now and almost out of their line of sight. Fred let go of her wrist, making Annie wince as the blood rushed back into it.

"We can't stay here," he said, "We'll find your brother but, we have to get out of here." The smell of burning wood had reached them now and the two stood watching the smoke spill into the night sky. Annie didn't bother arguing as she followed him out the forest. Her teeth chattered, winds fluttered through her unkempt hair as she wrapped her arms around her silk clad body. The walk back was silent other than the occasional screams that broke through.

"No," gasped Annie, watching a green jet launch into the air. The light twisted in the air, unrecognizable at first but then it formed a glittering green skull with a serpent protruding from its mouth like a tongue. The skull rose higher into the air expanding as it went until it was carved into the black sky like a new constellation. Screams erupted from every corner of the fields and woods as the green light illuminated the entire moor.

"Malfoy…Malfoy…ANNIE," Fred shouted, his face a pale white shaking Annie out of her stupor. He grabbed the edge of her shirt and pulled her along. Ginny sniffled in her brother's arms her hazel eyes wide with terror.

"Fred?" a voice called out. Annie could see a man standing off in the distance, waving a hand in the air.  
"Charlie?" Fred called back, the relief in his voice clear. The man nodded and started walking toward them. Annie immediately recognized the man from her first year at Hogwarts when he had been the Gryffindor seeker. He was taller now and stockier, with a face so freckled he looked tanned. His arms were muscular, littered with burns and scars.

"Are you three alright?" he asked, the worry in his face palpable. He gave Annie a startled look upon seeing her but didn't comment.

"We're fine," said George gesturing to him and Fred, "Ginny's hurt her ankle." Charlie nodded and said something about fixing it before taking Ginny from George.

"I have to go," Annie said hurriedly, tugging her shirt from Fred's grip, "I have to find Draco."

"You'll get yourself killed," Charlie told her, coming out of the tent. Annie's eyes narrowed and her lips squeezed into a thin white line. Five minutes ago, she was being accused of being a Death Eater and now they were worried about her dying.

"They won't kill me, they're only attacking muggles," she said holding her head high, daring him to say anything else. There were no more screams now but Annie could see bright red jets of light bouncing off the trees and into the sky. Charlie gave her a sharp nod and turned around disappearing into the tent. George followed shooting Annie a skeptical look.

"Malfoy," Fred said, as Annie turned in the opposite direction, "Thank you."

"Her blood's as pure as mine Weasley, it would have been a shame to see it spilled," Annie said, a scowl on her face. Fred's face turned an ugly red and he opened his mouth to shout something back but Annie was already running away.


End file.
